"MattM" <mat### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message 
news:web.470cf6eee510ffd24ef43cef0@news.povray.org...
> Yeah I did realize that it's windows only, I haven't look at other viewers
> and how cross platform they are (and how easy it is to create content).
>
> Anyone any experience of other similar viewers?
>
>

HTML has supported image maps more or less forever. It's a technology that's 
not used much these days, but, so far as I'm aware it works on every browser 
on all platforms. It's extremely easy to set up and doesn't need any fancy 
tools. You just define the shapes you want to control and actions to perform 
when something happens inside that shape.

You can overlay images using 'absolute' positioning. This means you can have 
a single big image with lots of small animated bits that don't take long to 
load. You can have as many areas as you want (circles or rectangles) and you 
can do more or less anything you want when the user initiates an event (by 
clicking the area/rolling the mouse over it etc.) e.g. running an animated 
gif, linking to a larger image/animation, loading a sound file etc.

The following example displays a big picture and overlays a small animated 
GIF that it hides away by specifying 'display:none'. When the specified area 
within the image is clicked it changes it to display=block, making it 
visible, showing the animation.


<img src=WholeScene.jpg
  style="position:absolute;left:0;top:0"
  usemap="#imagemap"
>
<img src=SmallAnimation.gif  id="Anim1" 
style="position:absolute;left:366;top:231;display:none">

<map name="imagemap">
  <area
    ALT="Click Me" TITLE="Click Me"
    SHAPE=CIRCLE COORDS="444,291,58"
    onclick='document.getElementById("Anim1").style.display="block"'
  >
</map>


regards,
Chris B.

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